None.
The present invention is a self-aligning miniaturized fluid coupling device for connecting fluid-handling components, tubes or devices. The MicroMount(trademark) System may be employed to fabricate extremely versatile and reliable surface-mount assemblies or arrays of fluid-handling hardware.
Many industries, including the semiconductor industry, use coupling hardware to connect gas lines and components in complex fabrication equipment. Previous connectors that have been incorporated into chip fabrication systems have served the needs of semiconductor manufacturers adequately, but at a high cost in terms of inconvenience and unacceptably high rates of failure. Conventional fluid fittings can be unreliable, especially if the seals which are used to join these fittings to other devices are misaligned or have been damaged due to improper installation. The high temperatures and pressures of the gases and liquids transported within these fittings and assemblies can eventually cause a breach of a seal, resulting in a leak that either contaminates the fluid within the line or in a dangerous loss of chemicals to the outside environment.
The Invention described and claimed below is related to earlier Inventions disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,440,477 entitled Modular Bottle-Mounted Gas Management System by Roderick G. Rohrberg et al., issued on Aug. 8, 1995, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,645 entitled Method for Supplying Industrial Gases Using Integrated Bottle Controllers by Roderick G. Rohrberg et al., issued on Aug. 18, 1998.
Previous attempts to provide fluid couplers and welding connectors have yielded mixed results. The Nupro Company of Willoughby, Ohio offers a variety of fittings identified by the Swagelok(copyright) Trade Mark. These fittings include substrates, manifold bases, end caps, bridges, surface-mounted diaphragms, bellows metering valves, seals and assembly hardware.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,125,887, which was issued on Oct. 3, 2000 to James V. Pinto, discloses Welded Interconnection Modules for High Purity Fluid Flow Control Applications. Pinto generally claims xe2x80x9ca rectangular metal modular block for directing fluid flow therethrough.xe2x80x9d (Preamble of claim 1, Column 5, Lines 30-31.) Pinto further recites limitations concerning a xe2x80x9cpluarlity (sic) of holes receiving fasteners for securing said component to said blockxe2x80x9d (claim 1, Column 6, Lines 5-6) and a xe2x80x9cplurality of holes receiving fasteners securing at least one said fluid control component to each said blockxe2x80x9d (claim 4, Column 6, Lines 20-22). Pinto""s Claims require the inclusion of holes that have been pre-formed and tapped in the body of coupler. Pinto""s Claims also require that these tapped holes receive separate fasteners which must be manually installed to connect the body of his device to a block or component. This manual installation is fraught with the risk of mis-aligning the fasteners, stripping their threads, damaging seals or producing a coupling to an external component which is not leak-proof.
Kinetics Group, Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif. sells conventional coupling hardware called K1S Modular Systems, including substrates and mounting, flange and manifold accessories. Information concerning these couplers may be viewed at www.kineticsgroup.com. Kinetics offers a flange accessory which generally comprises a body, a port and an integral tube stub that is connected to the port. This device is machined or milled from a single, solid piece of metal. The tube stub is a solid extension of the body, not a separate component, without any joints or seams between the tube and the body.
The shortcomings of conventional fluid couplers and gas control devices has presented a major challenge to designers in the field of industrial controls. The development of a self-aligning, surface-mount, miniaturized, safe, and clean fluid coupler would constitute a major technological advance. The enhanced performance that could be achieved using such an innovative device would satisfy a long felt need within the semiconductor fabrication and fluid handling industries.
The present invention, the MicroMount(trademark) System, provides a radically new, self-aligning surface-mount fluid coupler. The MicroMount(trademark) System comprises a wafer and a MicroMate(trademark) Interconnection Assembly. A MicroMate(trademark) Interconnection Assembly comprises a continuous, separate external tube and at least one MicroMate(trademark) Fitting. An alternative embodiment of the MicroMount(trademark) System also includes alignment studs which are used to connect the MicroMount(trademark) System to an external component.
One preferred embodiment of the invention comprises a generally flat, rectilinear wafer, body or substrate having exterior side walls, an upper wall and a lower wall. In a preferred embodiment, one or more ports are formed in the upper and lower walls, and extend through the substrate. Unlike previous fluid couplers, the invention does not include side wall ports, external tube stubs or mechanical fasteners to join substrate to substrate for welding. The lower ends of each of these transverse ports may each be connected to an external passageway. This external passageway comprises a continuous tube which is completely external to the wafer, and which is about the same size as the port. The tube may be connected to one or more MicroMate(trademark) fittings. The combination of the external passageway and MicroMate(trademark) fittings is referred to as a MicroMate(trademark) Interconnection Assembly. These fittings may include an elbow, a tee, a cross or some other configuration which guides and contains a fluid.
In a preferred embodiment, the wafer also includes four pre-formed, self-aligning pins or posts that may be used to connect an external device, block or component to the body. A thin foil sheet that includes alignment holes and xe2x80x9cC-sealsxe2x80x9d is installed between the wafer and the external device, which is secured in place by a set of retainers that engage the posts.
In one embodiment of the invention, the seal is first installed by aligning the four holes in the sheet bearing the seal with the alignment posts that extend from the body of the wafer. The foil sheet serves as a xe2x80x9cseal positionerxe2x80x9d which holds the seals in the proper location. The seal is properly aligned when the tapered ends of the posts are inserted through the alignment holes in the foil sheet. By holding the seal in the correct alignment and location, the seal-positioning foil avoids any unwanted motion, deflection or translation of the seal. Once the seal is properly installed by sliding the seal all the way down so that the seal is in contact with the upper wall of the wafer, the alignment posts are mated with a corresponding set of holes on an external component. Finally, a set of retainers such as nuts may be used to secure the external component to the fluid coupler.
Due to the novel design of the present invention, the correct alignment of the coupler, the seal and the external component does not depend on the skill of the assembler, since no separate screws or fasteners are required to manually mount an external component on the wafer. The integrity of the seal and the physical connection between the body or wafer and the external component are assured by this self-aligning feature. The present invention provides quality assurance, along with simplicity in installation, and provides for the automatic registration and alignment of the body and the external component.